Gorilla Glass manufacturer Corning has unveiled a follow-up YouTube video to its wildly successful “A Day Made of Glass,” providing another look into what the future could be like with the growth of glass touchscreen interfaces, from innovative chalkboards and activity tables in classrooms to uses for it in hospitals. Corning released two versions of “A Day Made of Glass 2″ — one with a narrator and another, abbreviated version without commentary — the video follows the life of young Amy and her family as they go through their day using various products made of glass. Amy does classwork on a glass tablet, controls the temperature of the car from the backseat and even attends a field trip at the Redwood Forrest with an interactive signage that brings learning to life. Her teacher also works with students on interactive touchscreen activity tables. Corning expects these activity tables to be rolled out in the near future. Last year’s video , which followed the same family, brought in over 17 million hits on YouTube and left many in awe of Corning’s interpretation of what’s possible with photovoltaic glass, LCD TV glass, architectural display and surface glass, among others. However, many left comments on YouTube asking which technology is actually possible with today’s resources and pricing. This time around, though, new technologies and applications are highlighted, such as glass tablets, multitouch-enabled desks, solar panels, augmented reality, electronic medical records and anti-microbial medical equipment. Corning may be making headlines these days for its Gorilla Glass product — a super-strong, lightweight glass which can withstand drops and mistreatment — but it’s hardly a new company and no stranger to innovation. In fact, the 160-year-old business even worked with Thomas Edison to create inexpensive glass for his lightbulbs. However, Corning noted at the press screening that there are several challenges the company is facing this year, largely due to lower LCD glass prices, higher corporate tax rates and declining equity earnings, which have combined to lower Corning’s profitability. Although LCD glass sales are likely to be flat through 2014, the company said it will remain profitable and continue to generate large amounts of cash. Last week, Corning announced that it raked in record 2011 sales of $7.9 billion and plans to grow profits to $10 billion by 2014. The company also recently announced that it is joining forces with Samsung Mobile to manufacture Lotus Glass for Galaxy-branded smartphones and Super OLED TVs. Corning’s ultra-slim, eco-friendly Lotus Glass is known for strong performance and withstanding higher-processing temperatures. Although Corning’s first “A Day Made of Glass” video was unveiled a week ago this year, Corning’s vice chairman and CFO James Flaws told Mashable that he couldn’t comment on whether or not the clips will become an annual tradition. “You can expect more from us though,” Flaws said. More About: Corning , gorilla glass , smartphones , tablets , trending , TVs , YouTube For more Social Media coverage: Follow Mashable Social Media on Twitter Become a Fan on Facebook Subscribe to the Social Media channel Download our free apps for Android , Mac , iPhone and iPad

From video marking to Second Life, technology is transforming the options for online students There’s not a red pen in sight when Russell Stannard marks his master’s students’ essays – but it’s not because the students never make mistakes. Stannard doesn’t use a pen, or even paper, to give his students feedback. Instead – and in keeping with his role as principal lecturer in multimedia and ICT – he turns on his computer, records himself marking the work on-screen, then emails his students the video. When students open the video, they can hear Stannard’s voice commentary as well as watch him going through the process of marking. The resulting feedback is more comprehensive than the more conventional notes scrawled in the margin, and Stannard, who works at the University of Westminster, now believes it has the potential to revolutionise distance learning. “It started when I began to realise how useful technology can be for teaching,” he says. “I wanted to help other teachers, as well as general computer-users, to learn how to use tools like podcasting, PowerPoint and BlackBoard, software that a lot of schools and universities use to allow teachers to provide course material and communicate with students online.” Follow the mouse So he set up a site to teach people how to use the technology, providing simple, video tutorials where users watch Stannard’s mouse pointing out how to use the software, with his voice providing constant commentary. He used the screen-videoing software Camtasia, and the site rapidly took off: it now receives more than 10,000 hits a month. Then he started considering integrating the teaching style into his own university work. “I was mainly teaching students on master’s courses in media and technology, and I realised that while I was talking about the benefits of new technology, I should be making the most of the opportunity to use it,” says Stannard. “That’s when I had the idea of video marking. It was immediately well received. Students receive both aural and visual feedback – and while we always talk about different learning styles, there are also benefits to receiving feedback in different ways.” Stannard says the technology is particularly useful for dyslexic students, who appreciate the spoken commentary, and students learning English as a foreign language. “I started my teaching career in language learning, so I quickly realised that students learning English would benefit from video marking. They can replay the videos as many times as they like and learn more about reasons for their mistakes.” Stannard also believes video marking is “perfect” for distance-learning students. “It brings them much closer to the teacher,” he says. “They can listen, see and understand how the teacher is marking their piece, why specific comments have been made, and so on.” The technology is already being used for informal distance learning, as Stannard uploads the videos he makes for his lectures at Westminster to multimedia trainingvideos.com.

They put the teaching element of the class on YouTube or similar and spend class time doing more 1-2-1 with students. This flip-flop of watching class at home and doing assignments in class is how the flipped classroom got its name.

Here’s an example from CockrumVideos:

So is this a good or a bad idea?

Some like Troy Cockrum are having really good results, but some of the comments in the article highlight some of the pitfalls of this pedagogy.

Some students aren’t ready for this, particularly I suspect adult learners who have become accustomed to lecturers who just, well, lecture.

Some students don’t have access to the web at home or in halls, so will be at a disadvantage

Some students only have dial-up access and won’t be able to watch the videos

Watching at the library may not be an option if kids are rural or if parents can’t afford to drive their kids there

Many public libraries don’t open in the evenings

On the plus side

For parents who like to help their kids with their homework, it provides revision of the topic for the parents too

The biggest complaint I get from parents is that they want to help their student with the math homework, but they just don’t remember how to. The flipped classroom eliminates the home frustration of not knowing how to do the math and in a way invites the parents to my classroom without having to physically be there.

The students in my classroom work in centers and I sit with about 8 students at a time while the others practice in different ways(i.e. puzzles, games, challenge problems). This really lets me see on a daily basis who is getting it and who is not.

And as for the the equity issue, I burn DVD’s for the students without internet.

There is no way around notes in math. They are completely necessary, however checking homework, teaching a lesson and waiting for students to copy eats up entirely too much time. Especially when I only have 55 minutes with each group. The kids don’t mind so much getting on the computer or TV for homework. I check their notes off as their homework grade and we complete practice in class. I use daily exit quizzes to track progress. This holds students accountable for working productively at their centers while I have carpet time with the small groups. The students are also required to fill out an activity log and learning targets for the week with reflective questions about what activities helped the most and what topics they are still struggling with. The majority of the students say that carpet time is their favorite and most beneficial activity. If I weren’t using the flipped classroom model there is no way I could offer this small group learning environment that they so obviously crave.”